12 to Sew: May

Last month I did absolutely nothing, so I set my mind that I would definitely do something this time. I did cut it quite close and it’s a very simple alteration (haha what else is new?) but it’s better than nothing, right?

First is a Uniqlo maxi dress I bought when I was pregnant in 2013. The length was fine that time because my huge belly hiked it up enough for me not to trip on it. But when my balloon belly is gone it’s too long for a non-heels wearer such as myself.

It’s a simple process of fitting, cutting and straight stitch hemming. 

I ended up taking 4 inches off the hem. That’s how too-long it was for little me. 

I got an instant turband, though!

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12 to Sew: April

subtitle: No-Show a.k.a. “I have nothing to show for this month”

I did plan on a bunch of things for this month but something happened: I found out I was pregnant.

YAY, right? Of course it’s happy news, except that it was sort of unplanned (we did want to have another kid, but not exactly this early. The twins would be just a bit over two years by my die date) and I dreaded the first trimester. Based on my previous pregnancy, my first three months were hellish: daily vomiting and extreme lethargy were the worst parts.

Thankfully, this time the vomiting rarely happened, which was the part I hated the most, probably because I was just carrying one this time instead of two. I did feel sleepy most of the day but at least I could still keep up with the twins. They cut down their sleep to once a day so the only chance I got to do some sewing was given up so that I could get some much needed shut-eye.

So that was the story of my April. The only times I could sew was while the twins napped but all I did was either nap with them or I had to go out on errands on my bike which I wanted to ride as much as I can while I still can.

Sorry! I promise to make up for it on May, and in the coming months when I  feel much better. 

Spring is Coming

In case you’re wondering: yes, that is a weak Game of Thrones reference. The opportunity presented itself, who am I to pass it up? :p

Anyway, my quick project was a simple revamp of this DIY wreath I made last December:

After a bit of watered down acrylic and sprigs from a tree downstairs, the wreath is now updated for the coming season:

Here’s a closeup of the watercolor effect

Sometimes I think it looks a bit trashy but overall it’s quite pretty. Plus, ths spring buds give it a dainty touch.

12 to Sew: March

Another month, another chance for me to scramble for a new sewing craft because I committed to this very minimal “challenge.” Honestly, it really is a challenge for me because I don’t really sew on a regular basis, and with two toddlers and a dog (and a husband) to take care of, free time is a somewhat imaginary thing nowadays. Also, I’m more of a refashionista than a seamstress who makes clothes from scratch (though I try sometimes, albeit sloppily) so you can kinda say the things I do are really just repairs or alterations. 

Then again, it’s not to say that what I do is a lesser craft. It does take some skill and imagination to take a finished object and make it into an entirely new thing.

12 to sew: February

I’m finally back in Shanghai! The twins and I were supposed to be here a month ago but certain unforseen and inexplicable events concerning certain babies’ passports prevented us from flying. So after almost a month later, we’re here. The past week was spent readjusting to life back in the winter cold; back to living in a small condominium; back to language barriers and no extra helping hands.

12 to Sew: January

I started rummaging through the piles of old clothes and cloths (purchased, cut out and left over from previous projects) I’ve accumulated over the years to see what I could still use and which ones I wanted to bring to Shanghai and sew with my new machine (have I mentioned I live in Shanghai now???!?!??!). In the end I packed half the usable stuff in my luggage, a quarter I organized and folded neatly for storage, and the rest were scraps too small for an actual garment but still potentially useful.
http://instagram.com/p/yheR7zF33E/

Yo

If you know me personally, you already know all the things that hve kept me insanely busy since my last blog post in 2011. Well actually the “insanely busy” part was just the past 2 years; the other years was just me being a lazy-assed blogger.

BUT ALL WILL CHANGE IN 2015

 

Uhhhhh…. bit by bit, I suppose. A few recent events spurned this decision:

• I’ve been revisiting some of my favorite craft blogs recently (C&C and NDAD), and dove back into the time sink that is Pinterest
• the husband bought me a new sewing machine (have I mentioned that I got married in 2012???)
• I want to make things for my boys (have I mentioned that I gave birth to twin boys in 2013??!?!?!!)
• the crafty little devil inside me is just itching to make stuff!

On Thursday (Jan29) I posted a little teaser of the things coming soon…well it was more like “part 1” than an actual teaser, but work with me here.

I want to MAKE AND BLOG ABOUT AT LEAST ONE SEWING PROJECT PER MONTH in an effort to get my crafting and blogging groove back. If I make and post more stuff beyond that, then that’d be awesome. As it isn’t a 365 nor an 52 project, I’ll call it “12 to Sew.”

Aaaaaand it all starts with the next post :p

What a tease

http://instagram.com/p/yZpRupF309/

Circle skirt

Sometimes I just go into fabric stores and look around. Sometimes I come out with nothing, but on May 16 I bought something.

 

Anyway I wasn’t really sure what to do with it at the time, I just liked the color and design. A friend suggested a skirt, and I thought that was a good idea. I just didn’t get around to doing it until now. Plus, I was busy with some other sewing project (and work, which I started just this week). I had quite a lot of this fabric so I figured I had enough to make this circle skirt which was simple enough. When I had bought some wide elastic, I went to work on it right away.

Looky, Looky, Looky!

Remember my first try at hand stitched book binding? I found a scrap of (synthetic) suede at Carolina’s and I cut and glued it on to make a cover! YAY! It looks so prettyyyyyyyy ❤

I’m considering sealing the whole thing in some sort of varnish or glaze because the paper will be exposed to moisture if used as a pendant. But if I do that all the glorious photocopied text would be hidden. What do you think?

I’ll make more of these when I scrounge up more leather. ^___^